World Rowing and the Centre for Sport and Human Rights Join Forces to Advance Responsible Sport

10 Aug 2023

Author - Centre for Sport and Human Rights

The Centre for Sport and Human Rights (CSHR) is pleased to announce that World Rowing is the latest organisation to join CSHR’s multi-stakeholder network working to advance responsible sport.

World Rowing, the governing body of the sport of rowing representing 157 member National Rowing Federations, works to make rowing a universally practiced and globally relevant sport in all its forms.  

World Rowing will collaborate with CSHR’s growing network of Engaged Organisations and partners to develop guidance and best practices to strengthen understanding of human rights challenges arising in the world of sport, and will benefit from expert dialogue and joint action in critical areas related to human rights.

Engaged Organisations participate in CSHR’s activities globally, and contribute to the growth of the sport and human rights movement. 

President World Rowing Jean-Christophe Rolland said: “We are delighted to start working with the Centre for Sport and Human Rights. Expectations in sport are changing, and sports organisations are looking to understand and demonstrate their commitment to respecting human rights. We see responsible sport, in all its forms, as fundamental to the governance of our sport and a key driver of its sustainable growth, and we are proud that the CSHR has seen this as a result of their vetting process. We look forward to working with the Centre on all matters regarding the principles of human rights, and to embarking our World Rowing Member Federations and our different communities on this journey.”

CSHR CEO Mary Harvey said: “We’re proud to welcome World Rowing to the Centre as an Engaged Organisation. World Rowing has a proud history of activism, which includes becoming the first sporting body to pledge to protect UNESCO World Heritage sites and engage with the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change initiative ‘Sports for Climate Action’. We look forward to supporting World Rowing on their human rights journey and benefiting from their contributions to our multi-stakeholder alliance.”

For more information on becoming an Engaged Organisation of CSHR, please contact [email protected].

About World Rowing

Headquartered in Lausanne, Switzerland, World Rowing (previously named FISA – from the French ‘Féderation Internationale des Sociétes d’Aviron’) is the international governing body of the sport of Rowing. Empowered by its 157 National Rowing Federation members, World Rowing sets the rules and regulations for the practice of the sport in all its forms, including but not limited to the disciplines of Classic Rowing, Coastal Rowing and Indoor/Connected Rowing. World Rowing also oversees Para-Rowing, sanctions events and works on coaching education and other matters relating to the sport of Rowing and its development. 

About the Centre for Sport and Human Rights

Launched in June 2018, CSHR works towards a world of sport that fully respects human rights by sharing knowledge, building capacity, and strengthening the accountability of all actors in the sport ecosystem through collective action. The Centre’s First Patron is Mary Robinson, former President of Ireland and former UN High Commissioner for Human Rights.

Follow the Centre for Sport and Human Rights

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